The Florida Highwaymen - A Private Collection
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From the 1950’s to the 1970’s, a group of 26 Black artists would, in a herculean effort, produce thousands of pieces of artwork depicting Florida’s unspoiled landscape. Because of Jim Crow laws, this group of 25 men and one woman were barred from showing in Florida art galleries and instead sold their art from the trunks of their cars up and down US Highway 1.
It started when a couple of these artists, while still in high school, met a white painter on Avenue C in Fort Pierce that was welcoming to all. A.E. Backus became a mentor, teaching the young Black artists everything from painting with a palette knife, to the business of selling art.
Today, original Florida Highwaymen paintings are highly coveted and sell for thousands of dollars. Their artwork currently hangs in embassies, museums and galleries that would have once rejected the artists because of their skin color. In 2016, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture opened with 18 Highwaymen paintings in its collection.
This exhibit endeavors to honor them and keep their history alive.